MR. PUNCH AND THE SPIDERS

Hutt News, Volume 3, Issue 4, 19 June 1930, Page 4

MR. PUNCH AND THE SPIDERS

Mr. Punch was very fond of ■fche spiders under the sofa. Every day hee would put his head under the soj'a and watch them for a long tin^c. '' - The other toys said: "Please, Mr. Punch, would you mind putting your legs under the sofa, too? When you leave them out we fall over them." "i rou- should look where you are going," said Mr. Punch. "I cannot put my legs under the sofa. I might tread on the spiders." This made the toys very angry, and one day Gollywog said to them: '' Iwill play a joke on Mr. IPurich, and that will teach him not to lie with his head under the sofa so that we fall over his feet." Gollywog went out of the nurs-. eryvand came back with; a spider in^his. han^.v,>^.;;^-:^^,.;J--. ■ ; ■ "Itisnot a real brie," he said. "It is made of wire. Look, I will put it under the sofa, and Mr. Punch will think it is a real one." The next day Mr. Punch said to Mr. Bear:"There is such a lovely big spider under the sofa.'' Mr; Bear said: "Oh, is there?" but he winked his eye at Gollywog, and Gollywog said: "Ha! ha! quietly up his sleeve. All that day Mr. Punch Watched the new spider. 1l Has it moved yet ?'' asked the Policeman. '' Not yet, •'' answered Mr. Punch "but I "think it is just going to." The Policeman said, "Ha! ha! quietly and walked on; but he fell over Mr. Punch's feet and got very cross. . : . "Has it moved yet? >rasked old Mrs. Duck, who was going shopping. : 'l Not yet,'' said, Mr. Punch. Mrs. Duck laughed so much that she did not notice his feet. She fell right OA^er them on to her nose, and Mary Jane had to put some plaster on it. "Mind it does not bite your nose, Mr. Punch.'' squeaked the chicken with the bald head, as it hurried past on its way to school. "Oh dear, I do wish everybody would leave me alone," sighed Mr. Punch. "I-think I will draw my feet under the sofa after all, and then they will not know that I am here." '.« ' So he pulled in his left leg very carefully, but he forgot to be careful with his right leg. It touched the spider, and the spider fell over.

"Why!" said Mr. Punch," "it is not a real spider at all. It is made of wire. I wonder who put it here?" Just then he heard a loud laugh. It was Golly wo g coming to see the fun. "Where is that silly old Mr. Punch?" he heard Gollywog say. "Why is he not watching the spider I put Under the sofa?" "Ha! ha!" though Mr. Punch, "so it was Gollywog. Well, I will play a Joke on him". He crawled right under the sofa and came out the other-side,, holding in his hand the wire spider; and creeping upbehind Gollywog, who put his head under the sofa to see the fun, he put the spider down his neck. : "Oh! What is that?" cried Gollywog. /'Ahlha!''' shouted Mr. Punch, "that is the new spider.'' "Oo—po—oo ! "cried Golly w^og, "it is tickling me because it is made of wire. Please-take it away, Mr. Punch, and I will never play Jokes like this again:"